Land News from Ukraine

Association "Land Union of Ukraine", which is the largest professional association of contractors on land management in Ukraine, which has never pursued and will not pursue any political goals, decided to apply to land managers, surveyors, appraisers and other qualified professionals in land and real estate market. The specificity of our profession is that we work directly with ordinary citizens, business, and in close collaboration with government agencies and local governments, so we know very well that land use and real estate market - these are the areas of social and economic life, which concentrated most apparent contradictions and problems of modern Ukrainian society.

Knowledge of these issues requires us first of all to show wisdom. Work of surveyor - is mainly identifying and fixing of boundaries, but at a time when Ukraine is going through tumultuous changes, we ask professionals in our industry not to create boundaries in their hearts and protect their human and professional dignity. Na matter where we were born, no matter what language we communicate in everyday life and what political views we support, but all we need to remember that we have just one Ukraine and it's our great common home - from Uzhgorod to Lugansk, from Novgorod Sivershchyna to Fiolent cape. Right now we have to listen carefully to each other and make decisions jointly, without emotion and waving flags.

Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine proposes to give a right to purchase agricultural land only to citizens, the State Land Bank and local communities. The maximum size of private land ownership will be 100 hectares and the minimum rental period - 15 years. This decision was agreed yesterday at a meeting chaired by the First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Ivan Bisyuk.

"We have established a working group to prepare the draft law "On agricultural land circulation" and invited the Minister of Finance, representatives of the State Land Agency, AMC, NAAS, Federation of Employers, NGOs, MPs to discuss this issue. Taking into account their comments we will complete the draft law and send it to the Cabinet of Ministers," said Ivan Bisyuk.

The participants discussed a number of fundamental issues of this bill. Thus, the bill provides a right to purchase land only to the state, local communities, the State Land Bank and the citizens of Ukraine. The second point is clear conditions for citizens who buy the farmland. The third one is publicity of land buyers and sellers.

Besides, the participants discussed the limitation of the size of private ownership of land to the amount of 100 hectares. The bill provides the establishment of lease conditions according to the antimonopoly laws. It is planned to set 15 years as a minimum rental period.

Ukraine and the World Bank agreed on cooperation in development of the law on protection of foreign investments. The Bank will continue cooperation regarding preparation of the land reform in Ukraine and promote making a full analysis of the soil fertility and development of grain logistics.

This was discussed at a meeting of Agricultural Policy and Food Minister Mykola Prysiazhniuk with head of the World Bank's agrarian sector Dina Umali-Deininger, the press service of the Agricultural Policy and Food Ministry informs.

“Relations of Ukraine and the World Bank have a positive influence on development of the domestic agricultural sector. Therefore, the issues considered today may help strengthen dynamics of its development,” Prysiazhniuk noted.

The Minister proposed to the bank to involve in development of the law on protection of foreign investments. The Minister also proposed to strengthen cooperation in preparation of the land reform.

The World Bank representatives agreed to arrange cooperation in those directions. At the same time, head of the World Bank's agrarian sector Dina Umali-Deininger noted that cooperation with Ukraine is very important for the bank. She also proposed to initiate the bank into holding a detailed analysis of the fertility and quality of Ukrainian soils.

In addition, participants in the meeting confirmed that a great attention will be paid to cooperation between Ukraine and the World Bank regarding renewal of irrigation in Ukraine's south and development of grain logistics.

As part of a board meeting of the state-run enterprise State Land Cadastre Center, one of the leaders in the world market of surveying and measuring equipment from Switzerland for the first time in Ukraine presented and demonstrated manufacturing capabilities of the latest surveying instruments.

"The latest space technology and equipment make it possible in a matter of seconds to determine the coordinates of points, and immediately transmit the data for making appropriate documentation. Thus, they will allow the State Land Cadastre Center to save time, fuel, engine life and to be competitive in the market," SALR General Director Andriy Tarnopolsky said.

Technical capabilities of the proposed equipment, according to him, will also ensure, firstly, high quality results during the execution of land management and cadastre works, secondly, setting the real situation on the ground allows professionals to quickly identify and correct errors in the cadastre data, reducing the time and the cost of the work.

"Among the priorities that the leaders of the state set before by the SALR, is an inventory of lands throughout Ukraine and the improvement of the quality of the data of the State Land Cadastre. The use of modern technologies in the land-surveying will help surveyors perform efficiently and in a short time this huge amount of work according to best international standards,” the SALR official summed up.

A complete electronic register of documentation on land arrangement and land assessment will be in use in Ukraine, which will ensure effective functioning of the State Fund of documentation on land arrangement.

“The electronic register of documentation on land arrangement and land assessment will ensure receipt of information by land owners and land users, tenant farmers, developers and customers of the land arrangement documentation. In addition, those data will help in work of executive authorities and local self-government bodies, law-enforcement bodies and the Public Prosecutors' Office. Work with filling and updating of the list of documents continues,” the agency informs.

For today, in the register, made public on the official web portal of the land agency, there are 5.409 million names of documents.